The economic shutdown has cooled the price of coffee futures and split the market.
Futures prices for arabica coffee beans, the upscale variety popular in restaurants and cafés, are down about 9 percent during the shutdown, which closed eateries around the world and clouded their outlook.
The price for cheaper robustica coffee, mostly used in freeze-dried formulas and pods for countertop coffee makers, has slipped only about 3 percent.
The price of both could fall farther: restaurants are reopening, but with limited seating capacity, and customers are slow to return, tamping down prices for coffee futures. Also, Brazil’s bumper coffee crop this year threatens to create a glut that will keep prices low.
